A Brief History of Tofu
by by the factory wall
Summary: A lifelong vegan, Edward Cullen finds himself trying to explain his lifestyle to a very interesting girl at his new college. 3-shot. All human, mostly fluffy.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: I own none of the characters of Twilight. They belong only to Stephenie Meyer.

**Summary**: Edward Cullen, a lifelong vegan, has just transferred to Middlebury College, where his best friend since childhood, Jasper, goes to school. There, he meets an intriguing group of people, including Miss Bella Swan, who is convinced that he's far too good for her, and would never give her a shot. Edward has other plans for the two of them.  
**Rating**: PG-13, mostly for language.  
**Length**: 1/3

**A/N**: This story is inspired by two things. 1) I am nearing my first-year mark as a vegan myself and 2) I've officially finished my college-visiting whirlwind that's occurred over the past few months. I actually did visit Middlebury up in Vermont, so I'm trying to base a lot of the campus off of the actual place. Also, to any readers who actually go to Middlebury, I know that in January you'd be on the one part of the 4-1-4, but I have creative license, dammit. Also, this is an attempt at not being angsty. I might fall flat on my face, I don't know. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, read my other fic.

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**A Brief History of Tofu**

1: _Invented in Northern China, circa 164 BC_

Was it too much to ask to eat lunch in peace? Granted, "lunch" here was a relative term, considering the time. What time was it? Around two o'clock. Two-thirteen to be exact.

But either way, he tried to eat alone, but even two weeks into the semester, he somehow found himself with a new gaggle of girls staring at him from across the room. It had just snowed. That was all. The girls were not staring at him; they were not giggling at him. They probably just had a snowball fight and were enjoying a laugh – going over every detail of their day so far. He just happened to sit in their range of vision. Right.

He did not really exist to them, right?

"Edward, it looks like you're still amassing the fans," a familiar voice said, coming up from behind to slap him on the shoulder and take the seat to his left. "You'd think they'd be used to real boys by now." This particular smile covering Jasper's face meant nothing good. It was his mischievous grin. Years of experience told Edward that nothing good could come of this smile.

"I'm thinking maybe I never should've matriculated. The girls at Evergreen never stared." That was a bit of a lie. All throughout their childhood together, Jasper teased Edward that he was too handsome for his own good. Edward tried very hard to be blissfully unaware of his "tantalizing good looks." Even if Edward held any interest for the gaping girls in the corner, his social skills deemed him unworthy. If he tried to go up to them, he wouldn't really know what to say, and would probably come off as a stuck-up prick. That's just how things happened. He preferred to stay to himself anyway.

Minus his ever-dwindling fan club, Edward really liked Middlebury. Vermont promised to be less rainy than Washington, the only thing he would really miss. He'd given Evergreen a semester, and realized it really didn't fit him as well as he had hoped. Actually, he'd given it about two weeks before talking through changing schools with his parents. After Jasper got wind, there was an immediate phone call coming in as an attempt to convince Edward to join him in Vermont.

Sitting across the table from his best friend now felt almost like a dream. Jasper had a perpetual smile since they arrived that January. Both of them were under the impression that, post-high school, they would only see each other on occasion. Once a year, during the summer – that sort of thing. Now, being together, Edward actually felt at home.

In kindergarten, Edward and Jasper immediately hit it off. The two of them read picture books together in the corner, and some of their teachers worried that they didn't talk to any other children. Growing up, the two had become almost dependent on each other – both were quiet and reserved in their own ways, but together, they got to be fairly loud and obnoxious, the way teenage boys should be. Everyone said they could be brothers, except for the fact that they looked nothing alike. Jasper was taller and more muscular, with honey blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Edward stood only two or three inches below Jasper, hair always mussed and green eyes wild. In essence, they really couldn't be any more different, either – Jasper had always been a bit more militant, but very convincing, whereas Edward tended to brood, though he was constantly aware of everyone around him. It baffled a lot of people who knew them both well that they could stand each other. Really, their entire relationship rested on that first day almost fourteen years earlier.

Sometimes Edward wished that Jasper was his real brother – Emmett got on his nerves most of the time. Too loud, too big, too crude. Funny, most of the time, but he had a knack for picking on his little brother.

Jasper hit Edward lightly, giving him a strange look. "Wake up, Edward. Your fake meat's getting cold and slimy… er."

"Shut up. This stuff's good, I swear," Edward said, taking a bite of his Tofurkey sandwich and watching Jasper's overacted gagging.

"I prefer the real thing, thanks."

"I thought you said you were going to try going veggie," Edward said, ignoring a new ripple of giggles from his audience.

"Shoulda, coulda, woulda. Water over the bridge. Under the bridge? What's that saying?"

"I always get it wrong."

"Anyway, do you have another class today? I was thinking we could go into town and catch whatever movie they're playing that actually came out three months ago. We could probably find it on DVD already. Jeez, this place is small. So what do you think?"

"Thanks for that mini-rant, Jazz, and no, I don't, but I have a French paper due Friday that I really should start working on. Besides, unless you feel like walking a mile in three feet of snow, I think going to the movies is out. Not that I would put it past you, you were always the masochist."

"No, you're getting me confused with you. I'm the sadist in this duo," Jasper said as he took a swig of Edward's soda. Edward rolled his eyes and went back to the book he'd been trying to read. "I can't believe those girls are still talking about you. This isn't high school; they could just come up and talk to you."

"They could even come up and talk to you. God knows I'd prefer it." Edward couldn't even try to hide the annoyance in his voice.

"Ah, I can't. Remember, I'm taken now."

"Oh yeah, I leave you alone for a few months and you get up the nerve to talk to some girl. How is Alice anyway?"

"She's good. Bummed that she hasn't met you yet, though."

"Well, we keep missing each other."

"We should remedy that." Jasper said, picking at Edward's plate of fries. "I ate lunch an hour ago and I'm still hungry. That's not right."

"Take the fries. I didn't really want them to begin with."

"Thanks." The two of them sat in silence for a while after that, not that it bothered either of them. In fact, they both kind of reveled in it. Without silence, they never would have met. Edward always thought that the mark of true friendship was that two people could sit together without saying anything and be completely comfortable. Jasper, being the kind of person who easily got lost in his own thoughts, enjoyed being able to do so in the company of Edward without feeling like anyone got offended at his lack of chattiness. Edward just cherished the peace.

After some time (during which the number of Edward's fries had greatly diminished), Edward looked up from his book. The three girls had left the cafeteria, and someone new sat in their place. She was pouring over a book of her own, back hunched, brow furrowed, chocolate hair swept in a curtain over her face.

"Do you know her?" Jasper asked after about a minute. Edward hadn't even realized that he – for once – had been staring.

"Uh, no," he said, trying not to blush as he turned back to his book. "Why?"

"You were staring, that's all." Jasper shrugged, turning back to his fries. He had used up all his teasing for the day. If Emmett sat in his place, Edward knew he would not be hearing the end of it.

"I was not." Edward was too late in defending himself.

"Whatever you say."

"I wasn't staring."

"Okay, Edward." He popped the last French fry into his mouth, and at the same time, his eyes widened. Edward tried not to laugh. "Oh shit, I have a bio lab in ten minutes. I can't believe I forgot. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Yeah sure," Edward said, but Jasper had already rushed out, flinging his backpack over his shoulder in a blur. With a sigh, Edward cast a glance down at his lunch – a now-empty plate of half-soggy fries, a self-assembled Tofurkey sandwich, and a coke (which Jasper had also finished off for him). "Guess I'll call it a day."

At this point, Edward only used lunch as a smokescreen for getting personal reading done. His roommate was almost constantly working, and he preferred the atmosphere of the library for actual schoolwork. Milking his cafeteria time for all it was worth, Edward spent most of his lunch time to sink his teeth into the book of the week. Currently, he was trying his hand at a little Joyce.

Rather than continue to sit alone (the only other person in the room was the mystery girl, who seemed engrossed in her own book) with a mostly-eaten lunch that he hadn't really eaten, he decided to get some work done. He really did have to start that French paper. The library was, at this point, closer than his dorm room, so he decided to cross the snowy, frozen expanse that was the campus to get there.

The trek to the library went without seeing much human life. A few people ran around throwing snowballs at one another, but they didn't cross Edward's path.

Once he got inside, the cold had seeped through his parka to his bones. The heat was welcome. Crossing the common area quietly (a few people had passed out on the couches, as usual), he made his way to the library. About halfway through, though, he decided against it. He could just as easily sit outside – there was an empty couch just by the door – and get all his work done. Considering that Jasper's biology lab was one floor up, he could wait for that to finish, and call Jasper down.

Somehow sitting in the common room morphed into napping in the common room, however.

He woke with a snort when someone poked him in the shoulder. He blinked a few times, banishing sleep from his eyes. He had been dreaming, he thought – his dream made no sense. Back in the cafeteria, he was sitting with that girl, neither of them talking, but both grinning unstoppably. His mind's eye had such a clear image of her smile, even though he had only seen a fraction of her face. After shaking his head a little in an attempt to focus, he realized that he was looking up into the face of his dream's co-star. As soon as she realized that he was awake, a bright red undertone seeped into her cheeks.

"Sorry. Um, you left this in the cafeteria." She handed him his beat-up copy of _Dubliners_. Of course he'd forgotten to pack it.

"Uh, thanks…" he said, clearing his throat. His voice was still thick with sleep, although he couldn't have been asleep for very long. Still blushing, she turned away from him quickly. Before he could even react, though it seemed like it played in slow motion, the girl tripped over a backpack and crashed to the floor. "Are you okay?" he said, scrambling to get to his feet and help her up. If possible, she was even redder than before – a solid, beet red.

"Yeah, I'm… this happens all the time. I'm good," she stammered. She stood on two feet now, avoiding his gaze. Realizing that he still had one hand wrapped around her arm, he jerked away quickly, looking intently at her face.

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Like I said… happens all the time," she said, stealing a glance up at him.

"That's probably not information you should share with people," he said with a slight chuckle. He had to try not to start at that – he never joked around with girls like this. He had only spoken, what, five sentences to her, and already he felt at ease. She had nearly broken her nose on the floor right in front of him, he had to remind himself, and there was little he could do to top that embarrassment. "I'm Edward," he said.

"Bella." She didn't sound very sure of herself. She did smile though, trying to be polite through the intense blush. Even her ears matched the color of her cheeks.

"Nice to meet you. And thanks again," he said. She blushed slightly more.

"Any time," Bella said with a nod before turning away – no less gracefully than before, though this time her foot didn't catch to any obstacles.

Edward sat down, and opened the book she had returned, mostly as a disguise to watch her retreat. He watched her grimace at the snow as she pushed a door open and picked her way through the whiteness. He couldn't help but smile a little.

On the next floor's walkway, a group of students spilling out from the science wing, and he caught sight of Jasper's blonde head towering over everyone else. How long had he been asleep? he thought as he glanced down at his watch. Four o'clock on the nose. He'd slept at least an hour, maybe even an hour and a half. Jasper emerged at the foot of the steps, listening to a very short girl talk excitedly. At least, Edward guessed that she was talking excitedly – for such a small person, she gesticulated wildly and with large, graceful motions. On Jasper's face was a broad, contented smile as he watched her. This must be Alice.

Jasper looked up, and started at the sight of Edward slumped on one of the couches. He took Alice's tiny hand in his and bent down (a good foot and a half) to whisper in her ear. She smiled, and looked over at Edward out of the corner of her eye. In a split second, she was bounding across the floor to plop down next to him, hand extended.

"Edward Cullen. Alice Brandon," Jasper said with the slightest simper.

"I'm so glad to finally meet you," Alice said, shaking Edward's hand enthusiastically. "Normally, I'd be hugging you -"

"Emphatically," Jasper added.

"- but Jasper warned me that you weren't the hugging type." Edward laughed. Alice's bubbly happiness was infectious. "Anyway, Jasper and I were just on our way to my dorm. My roommate makes a killer cup of coffee, and I haven't introduced them yet. Wanna come? It could be a party."

"I'd love to, Alice, but I have some work to do," Edward said. He immediately felt almost guilty considering how far her face fell. "But I can do it later. I've been procrastinating all week, what could a few more hours hurt?"

"That's the spirit," she said brightly.

Luckily Alice's dorm wasn't too far from the library building – Edward was considering curling up there for the night to avoid the snow. She knocked on her door three quick times before turning the handle. Like most dorm rooms, it was small, making four people a tight fit. "Hey, Bella," Alice said as she slipped her coat off and threw it on her bed. "Jasper, Edward, this is my roommate Bella Swan. Bella, you've heard plenty about Jasper already, and this is his best friend Edward…"

Edward couldn't really find the voice to give her his last name. It made perfect ironic sense that Bella would be his best friend's girlfriend's roommate. "Uh, Cullen," he said, shaking the amazement out of his head. "But we've met."

"Oh, have you?" Jasper said, cocking on eyebrow at Edward as he flopped down onto the bed next to Alice.

"He left a book in the cafeteria. I returned it," Bella said matter-of-factly, looking directly at Alice and no one else.

"You know, I had this weird feeling that you two would meet before I met him," Alice said, her voice drifting off towards the end. She snapped herself out of her little trance suddenly and looked back at Bella. "Anyway, I promised these boys some mid-afternoon coffee. Would you be willing to oblige?"

Bella seemed to be weighing her options. In her hand was the same book she had been reading in the cafeteria, only now Edward was close enough to see what it was – _Wuthering Heights_. "Um, sure. Just let me finish this page," she said quietly, turning back to her book. The same furrowed brow cast itself over her face, making her look serious, intent. It worked for her.

Jasper looked from Edward to Bella and back as Alice explained something from the lab to him, and then cleared his throat. Edward snapped to attention, not realizing that he'd been staring at Bella again.

"Okay. Off to the kitchen," Bella said, snapping her book shut and standing up in the same motion. Edward prepared himself to catch her in case she fell.

"So, Bella, how was your math class today?" Alice asked as Bella fumbled with the coffee pot in the common area's tiny kitchen. Edward couldn't help but notice Jasper's arm wrapped loosely around her waist, fingers playing at the hem of her shirt. Jasper, of course, was slouching a bit in order for his arm to be low enough to reach Alice's diminutive waist.

"Ugh, I can't wait for it to be over and done with," she said. "Math just doesn't make any sense to me. It's all gibberish."

"I can always tutor you, if you want," Alice offered. "I'm not too bad at math."

"Thanks, but you've got enough on your plate." Bella cast a sidelong glance at Alice in Jasper's arms.

"I know how you feel," Jasper said in his low voice – no one would ever guess that he was being sarcastic. "Edward was always better than me at math. It killed me inside to know that it made perfect sense to him, none to me."

"It's the piano. Always helped with numbers."

"You play?" Bella said, trying to mask the curiosity in her voice, but failing miserably.

"Yeah, ever since I was little. My mom sort of forced me into it, but I really love it."

"Once he gets to a piano, you can't stop him. He could play for hours,"

"Ooh, you'll have to show us some time," Alice said. The coffeepot dinged next to Bella, and she jumped, only slightly. Edward felt strange knowing that he probably _was_ the only one to notice. As Bella poured the coffee into four mugs, Edward watched her as discreetly as he possibly could. She had tucked some of her chocolaty brown hair behind her now-pale ears, though strands fell in her face. Her eyes matched her hair color, and they seemed to gather this intense look about them that he rarely saw – like she was concentrating on everything.

"Edward, cream?"

"Um, no thanks. Vegan." She raised an eyebrow at him as she handed him the coffee, but said nothing.

"Ah, Bella, you are a life saver," Alice said as she took the coffee.

"Like you need more caffeine in your life, Alice," Bella replied with a smirk. "Sometimes I wonder if I should worry about your hyper levels. It's inhuman."

"You should see her when she's angry, though," Jasper countered. A real look of fear brewed behind his eyes.

The four of them made their way back to Alice and Bella's room, each sipping away at their coffee. About a half an hour later, Edward found himself sitting on the floor, back pressed against Bella's bed, laughing at Alice's story about her art history class earlier that day. Someone had apparently forgotten that it was an art history class. Bella was sitting on the bed above him against the wall, eyes wide with laughter. Alice and Jasper sat holding hands on the bed opposite.

Somehow, Alice's story devolved into Jasper teasing her lightly, though as usual his sarcasm was rather deadpan, and Edward and Bella getting sucked into their own conversation.

"So, how long have you been a vegan?" she asked. For some reason, she still didn't look him in the eye.

"My whole life. My parents were raised as crazy hippies, and they had pretty much never even touched meat."

"It seems like it'd be hard to do."

"It's really not, though. I can't imagine living any other way. Although, once, I decided to be rebellious. I was about thirteen, and I ended up getting really sick and going to the hospital."

"Really?" she asked with wide eyes, the first time she really focused on him. It made his heart flutter slightly, but he ignored it.

"I mean, I'd never eaten meat before in my life, so my body doesn't have any of the enzymes to break it down. Also, I'm pretty sure the chicken wasn't cooked properly anyway and I got food poisoning, but my dad liked to spin it as a lesson not to try new things." She chuckled. "Well, no, my dad's always trying to get me to try new things."

"You're just too afraid of change to do anything," Jasper said. Bella so thoroughly enthralled Edward that he hadn't even registered that Jasper and Alice were listening in. Apparently Bella hadn't, either, because she was blushing again. Edward looked down at his watch. It was already six. Dinner had started being served about an hour ago.

"Anyone going to dinner?" he asked, trying to move the subject off of him.

"What time is it?" Jasper asked.

"Six."

"Yeah, I'm starving. Alice, care to join me?" he asked, getting a light giggle from her. "You two coming?"

"I'm not that hungry, really," Edward said.

"You should probably eat before you pull an all-nighter," Alice said, giving him a worried look. He shrugged. "Bella, you coming?"

"I'm not that hungry either. Anyway, I was kind of hoping to finish this chapter before you guys barged in here," Bella said, carefully averting her eyes from Edward's.

"Well, I guess it's just you and me," Alice said to Jasper, practically jumping off the bed. "See you guys later." She led Jasper out of the room, pulling their jackets along with her.

"I guess I'll get going then," Edward said. Bella hadn't picked up her book yet, leaving the two of them sitting in awkward silence. She nodded, still not looking at him. "Anyway, it was nice talking to you again." He stood up and looked around for his own parka.

"You too," Bella said rather meekly. He put one arm through a hole before she spoke up again, "Do you take Psych 101 with Hildebrand?" The question came out of nowhere and took Edward aback a little.

"Every Tuesday and Thursday at three."

"I thought I'd seen you before."

"Oh, are you in that class?" Edward felt like an idiot saying that. She wouldn't have asked if she wasn't. He wanted to hit himself. "Sorry, of course you are. It's just a big class, that's all." Again, he wanted to hit himself. A nice smack on the cheek, a whack on the head. She knew that it was a big class.

"I guess I'll see you there tomorrow, then."

"Save you a seat," he said, grinning. She smiled too, finally looking up at him with warm eyes.

"Cool."

Edward walked out of the room in a daze, shutting the door behind him. Everything seemed brighter, even though the campus was now shrouded in a Vermont winter's night. Outside, all the lights from the buildings light the snow up, so that white patches sparkled against the shiny pale blue of the parts still under the sky. He couldn't explain the feeling he had – he was still smiling, he felt it tugging at the muscles in his cheek. Something about Bella Swan sent warmth to his freezing toes, immersed in snow. The idea of seeing her again the next day made him grin wider.

--

Bella could not explain why she was smiling so much. Now that she was alone in the room, she hadn't even picked up her book. Instead, she threw herself into her pillow and let out a small scream. She wasn't sure what brought it on; all she knew was that she had this burning desire to let out some bizarre noise.

After the half-scream, half-squeal was done, she picked herself up. Edward Cullen. The only thing she had been thinking about for the past few hours. The way he smiled at her when she tripped, the way he smiled at her when he left – it was too much. He had this crooked grin that would send her into frenzy, if she could be alone. His eyes twinkled and he ran his fingers through his already-messy hair every time he laughed. She wished she had caused that laughter, but she was fairly certain that he barely saw her.

Though she wasn't one-hundred percent convinced. There were times that she was sure he was staring at her, but she didn't dare look – in case he wasn't, and then he noticed her staring at him. He probably thought she was a freak with an inner-ear infection.

Sure, he seemed at-ease enough in her presence, but as far as she could tell, he wasn't the tense type. As far as she could tell, he was perfect. He played piano, he was a good student, and he was dedicated to his life as a vegan. Also, there was the fact that he looked as though he belonged in a painting of angels when he slept. She almost wished she hadn't woken him, but after spending nearly an hour wondering whether or not to find him and return the book, she wasn't ready for even more indecision.

One thing did confuse her. He seemed genuinely happy that they had a class together, and he was grinning as he left. So that meant he didn't just see her as some dumb girl blinded by his good looks (of which she was sure there were a lot). Unless she misinterpreted him.

Anything was possible, really.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I own none of the characters of Twilight.

Number 2 out of 3. Thanks for the reviews! This one sort of reverts back to the angst I know how to do so well, though unintentionally.

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**A Brief History of Tofu**

2: _Discovered accidentally when mixed with sea salt_

The sun was too bright, the cafeteria was too loud, it was too cold. Or maybe it was just too early in the morning and Edward wasn't really awake yet. The breakfast on his tray consisted of tofu scramble and a huge mug of coffee, although he didn't really have much of an appetite at that point. The coffee was a definite must, but the food seemed pointless.

Across the room, his eye caught on Bella, who sat picking at her own breakfast and staring off into space. Quickly going over his options in his head, he decided to plop down at the chair next to her. "Mornin'," he grumbled.

"Hi," she said, sounding a bit bewildered, but immediately returning to staring at nothing. The past few days, they had seen each other around campus – in the library, crossing the snow-covered footpaths – and they'd made a habit of sitting next to each other in Intro to Psychology, but weren't rapidly becoming attached at the hip. Part of that disappointed Edward a little bit. However, sometimes it seemed like Bella was thoroughly uninterested in him, which was, granted, kind of refreshing (although by now he rarely had onlookers everywhere he went). He kept telling himself that, at least. If he thought of it as refreshing, he wouldn't so feel frustrated.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Bella's gaze drop to his meal. "That looks…"

"Disgusting?" Edward offered.

"No. Well, yes. I was going to say 'interesting.'" He picked up a forkful and shoved it in his mouth. It was actually really good – so he could be thankful that he got it, at least – but rather than tell Bella that, he wrinkled his nose and gagged. "That bad?" she asked.

"You want to try?"

"No, I'll pass. I prefer my eggs real, thanks." Edward took another forkful and danced it in front of her face.

"You know you want to."

"You just confirmed that it was really bad."

"I was joking. C'mon, try it." Bella rolled her eyes and took the fork from Edward, popping the chuck of tofu into her mouth. Her expression was uncharacteristically blank as she chewed. That had caught Edward's attention recently – Bella seemed to wear her emotions directly on her sleeve, even though she visibly tried not to. It was like watching an internal battle every day.

"That's mildly horrible," she said finally.

"No it's not. You just don't know." Edward stuck his tongue out at her and went back to his food. Once again, he found himself internally whacking his head for that. He was turning into a six year old right before his very own eyes.

"I can see where if that's all you had to eat, it could be good, but… no." She had a broad smile that he liked to pretend was reserved for him – over the past week or so, he'd seen it every now and then. "I don't know how you live."

Edward just shrugged. "I'm sure if I took biology, I could go into a very complex and smart-ass explanation for that, about breathing and heart beats and nervous systems."

"I think its way too early for that anyway."

"I'm right there with you." It had gotten so easy for him to get lost in her eyes. They had this deep, swirling quality to them that sucked you in and completely disoriented you, made you feel warm. It took all his strength to break away. "I take it you didn't sleep well?"

Bella made a strange sound, that seemed to be a grunt of agreement, but Edward couldn't be too sure. "I have a hard time sleeping some nights. The cold doesn't really help all too much."

"Where are you from? I can't believe I haven't asked that yet."

"Arizona."

"Wow, so you're really out of your element, then." At least Washington got cold, too, Edward thought. This explained perfectly why Bella got disgruntled so easily.

"Yeah, although most people didn't believe me when I told them where I'm from, way back at the beginning of the year. I guess it's less surprising now that I've lived in Vermont for a while, but still."

"I don't follow," Edward said. Maybe he was putting too much thought into everything. He needed coffee. His brain didn't work right.

"Arizona, sunny. Me, albino. Doesn't really make sense, does it?" Bella said, pointing at her pale face.

"Ah. No, I suppose not."

"At least you have an excuse for being so pale, you're from Washington." Immediately after she said that, Bella tensed up. Once again, Edward found himself one step behind and completely confused. Next to him, a bright red hue started creeping into Bella's cheeks as she stared in the opposite direction. Then it dawned on him – he'd never told her that he came from Washington. Although, maybe it was his morning-brain, but he still didn't understand why Bella was embarrassed by having this information. He would've asked, but she was already uncomfortable enough, so he decided to change the subject.

"So, did you finish Wuthering Heights yet?" Bella nodded. "What'd you think?"

"I've read it before."

"Oh, sorry. I didn't mean-"

"Don't be. How could you know? By the way, you seem really flustered early in the morning." To that, Edward could only half-smile. He felt like his entire face was crooked, and he knew his eyes hadn't opened completely yet. "It's one of my favorite books. I don't really know why. I guess… their love is sort of their redeeming quality, maybe. I don't know."

"Too early?"

"Yeah. Can't think properly," she said, smiling lazily.

"I think you and I should refrain from intense conversation any time before noon."

"Agreed." Once again, she flashed that broad smile, and a little blush followed, staining her cheeks. The more he talked to her, the more he found himself longing for those moments when she would grin and blush – it sent electric sparks up his spine and made him smile in turn, like she had injected him with some sort of giddiness drug. He wondered whether or not it was really the time that made his thoughts get jumbled or if it was being around her. Certainly, if he was eating breakfast with Jasper, he'd have woken up by now. He had always been more of a night person, but normally he never had this much trouble getting his brain to function after waking up. Also, coffee tended to be a nurturer in the waking process, rather than making him feel even more ridiculous.

For the moment, though, he loved sitting there, barely coherent, just smiling away like an idiot with her. It was incredibly easy to do.

--

Bella couldn't get him out of her head. Whenever she saw him – even his graceful stride from far away – her heart fluttered and she instantly grinned. Talking to him made her fingertips warm up and her cheeks flush. Alice said she had even noticed that Bella was sleeping better this past week. Less tossing and turning, less talking. Although how Alice knew what Bella's sleeping habits were, she had no idea – her roommate had a tendency to pass out as soon as her head hit the pillow (and sometimes before).

When they had first met, she was convinced he was perfect. As time went on, and she ended up spending more spare moments with him, she saw that he had a habit of being rather shy. Actually, she had only noticed that when other people he knew popped in. For whatever reason, when it was just the two of them (these moments being unfortunately rare), he seemed completely at-ease, constantly joking with her and with this mind-erasing crooked grin constantly painted on.

It was getting increasingly difficult to spend time with him. It made her ache, and it took everything in her power not to do something she'd regret. Even with all their brief moments together, she could plainly see that he didn't hold the same level of interest for her as she did for him.

The closest they ever got – the closest Bella could probably manage without fainting – was sitting next to each other in psych. Even then, with metal bits of chairs keeping them apart, her mind would start to wander into… well, bad places. Places that she had no right wandering into. Places that needed to be shaken from her head.

So she decided to avoid looking at him in general – if she didn't look, she wouldn't end up staring, saving both of them a whole lot of embarrassment. He would never have to know the way his cologne made her swoon (though she wasn't sure it was cologne – he just happened to smell fatally sweet), nor would he have to know that each time he smirked at her as he sat in the next seat over caused her breath to hitch and her heart rate to increase. Rapidly. And wasn't it better that way?

Sometimes she wondered. Especially this particular morning. Her food looked disgustingly greasy, and she wished she'd only picked up an apple in the dorm kitchen. She had just decided to throw it out when Edward dropped in beside her. His hair was even more disheveled than usual, making it look like he literally rolled out of bed and walked to the cafeteria. His eyes barely stayed open as he started picking at his fake scrambled egg.

She couldn't help but notice that he had this weird habit of smacking his lips when he was tired.

She tried not to think about it.

The two of them left together to go off to their respective morning classes. When they reached the door, he held it open for her, running one hand through his hair. "Thanks," she said.

"Bella, I was wondering…" he started, but trailed off.

"Hmm?"

"Oh, nevermind. Stupid question."

"Hasn't anyone ever told you there's no such thing?"

Edward smirked at her before averting his eyes. That smile made her knees turn into jelly. She just had to make sure he never knew that. "Ah, no, but this… this was a stupid question."

"You won't know until you ask," she said, finding that she was matching him grin for grin. If he had looked flustered in the cafeteria, he was completely abashed now. The red tinge that plagued her cheeks so easily formed on his, and he kept biting his lip and running his fingers through his hair. She wanted to reach up and flatten it out. "I highly doubt it was that bad."

"See, now I've forgotten what it was. I swear, nobody should have to wake up this early in the morning, ever."

"It's only seven-forty-five. You've been up at least a half hour."

"Well, my brain takes an hour to warm up. Around an hour and a half to process information." He smirked again, and then shook his head. "Anyway, I'm sure it wasn't important." Even though he still had the slightest hint of pink in his cheeks, Bella decided not to push it. If he really didn't want to ask, she had to respect that. Besides, the blush could just be from the biting cold, and the playing-with-the-hair was probably just because the wind blew everything into disarray. "Anyway, I'll see you later," he said as he stepped into the doorway of his French building.

"Yeah, see you," Bella said, hiding her face as she turn away. She knew it would visibly fall. She kept having to berate herself internally for all this – she'd barely known Edward a week, and there was not even a shadow of the possibility that he was interested; she needed to stop falling head over heels for him. Immediately after his body disappeared behind the heavy door, she felt her shoulders slump and her smile dissipate. They weren't dating! She had no right to react that way! "Goddamn it," she muttered, kicking the snow on the path ahead of her.

"Oh, Bella!" She spun around to see Edward's bronze-covered head poking out from behind the door. "Are you a Flannery O'Connor fan?"

"I haven't read much. Just a short story or two."

"I have this book I think you might like. If you want to stop by my dorm later, you know," he said.

"Um, yeah, sure. I'd love to." Bella had to contain herself. What exactly she was containing, she wasn't sure. She turned around, but this somehow ended up with her landing on her butt.

She hadn't seen the black ice directly in front of her, and Edward made her so completely dizzy that she never had the time to register her fall. "Bella! Are you alright?" Immediately, a pair of strong arms were around her, lifting her up.

"Yeah. Just. Ow." Edward's eyes were full of concern, but Bella could feel her face burning up – she was probably bright red. Not even in the category of blushing by now.

"I know you said you fall all the time, but I'm starting to think you need a knight to follow you around. Are you okay?" he asked again, looking her up and down.

"My butt hurts." He laughed, and pushed some of her wind-whipped hair out of her face. "Um, I mean… I'll be fine. Just, um, go to class."

"Are you sure? I could walk you to the nurse." He couldn't really contain his laughter.

"Really, Edward, I'm fine."

"Okay." He didn't look like he believed her as she started to hobble away. He didn't follow after her, at least. Well, Bella wasn't exactly glad of that. No, she was. She'd embarrassed herself in front of him enough.

Maybe being friends with Edward would end up being absolute torture, she thought with a cringe.

--

Edward didn't want to admit how much he was hanging onto the hope that she would knock on his door. Every time he heard a sound out in the hall, he jumped a little bit, hoping she stood outside waiting to knock. The door opened once, but it was only his roommate Mike.

He wasn't imagining things, right? She seemed to like him. At least, in a friendly manner. Or at least tolerate him. If she wasn't romantically interested, he could be okay with that. In time. Not initially, but in time, he'd get used to it.

Either way, his skin crawled while he sat there. He needed to move around, to do something, to go somewhere. Anything. Just ignore the fact that she wasn't coming. It didn't really make sense to him.

The snow was falling lightly outside, and students ran around throwing snowballs. He had to dodge a few as he walked around. He hoped the snow would make him feel less antsy – calm him down a bit. Unfortunately, it did the opposite. Now he only wanted to go inside, get away from it. The more he tried to get distracted, the less it worked. Every other thought focused on Bella – which made him alternately smile and frown.

He didn't remember ever feeling so light around a person before, as though he had no ties to the ground. She let him float in the air.

His hands started to shake, and he shoved them into his pockets. Before leaving the dorm, he had stuffed _A Good Man Is Hard to Find_ in his back pocket. He'd never felt like this because of anyone before in his entire life.

This was just walking without paying attention. Eventually, he took shelter in the library from all the flying snowballs. As long as he was wandering, he might as well look into getting something worthwhile done, he thought. Upon opening the door, he came to an abrupt halt, though it didn't stop Bella from running into him. He felt the corners of his mouth turn up reflexively.

"Oh, hi Edward," she said with an identical smile.

"Hey."

"I was actually just on my way to your dorm. For the book." The way she said it didn't really convince him, though. Her eyes kept dipping away and she nervously tucked hair behind her ears.

"Just your luck, I have it right here," he said, the smile faded.

"Thank you," she muttered. He nodded, confused. Bella carefully stepped around him, smiling politely. Her brown hair shone in the bright lights of the common room, looking silky smooth; and then there were her eyes. Bella, no master at hiding her emotions, seemed almost hurt, confused. He wondered if maybe he projected his own feelings onto his image of her. Probably.

"I guess I'll see you in Psych tomorrow," he said. Then she did something that confused him even more. Her face fell, visibly. "Unless you wanted to get coffee."

Almost without thinking, she responded with an enthusiastic "yeah" and a bright smile. His chest felt warmer seeing that smile, and he grinned right back.

The two of them went to one of the small student centers on campus, where the cheapest coffee was. Somehow, the awkward situation at the doors of the library was instantly forgotten, and they dove into a teasing argument about her parka. "It's really not that bad," Bella said with a pout when Edward opened the door for her. "You know, you give chivalry a whole new name."

"What do you mean?"

"You always open the door for me. Or anyone, really. You seem unfailingly polite."

Edward chuckled slightly. "I blame my parents for that. Treat others the way you want to be treated, that kind of crap. Is it really that chivalrous?"

"You're a regular Lancelot."

"Well shit. I guess you have your own personal knight then."

"As long as I don't have to pay you." Small thrills and bashful smiles – he wondered how he'd ever lived without them. Edward ordered his coffee (caffeine – tall, black), and watched Bella out of the corner of his eye. Most of the time, she laughed along with him, but there were these moments – like at the library – where her brow furrowed and it looked like she concentrated on being more indifferent in the conversation; she detatched herself. "Bella…"

"Yeah?" she said, turning her head quickly to look at him. It sent her hair flying around her face.

"Um, I know this is a…"

"Stupid question?"

"No such thing, right?"

"Of course."

Edward took a deep breath, and dove right in. "I was wondering… do you have a boyfriend?" The color sort of drained from her face before flooding back, blush in full bloom.

"Uh, n-n-no. No, I don't." Edward just nodded, and they both sipped at their coffee. "Do you?"

"Have a boyfriend?"

"Or a girlfriend."

"No."

"Oh. Good."

"Good?"

"You know. Just…" she trailed off, shaking her head. "Um, I actually have some work to do, so I should…"

"Right," he said, standing up.

"Thanks for the coffee," she said, backing out of the door.

"Anytime," he said under his breath after she left.

He knew how stupid his grin must've looked, but it stayed on him for the rest of the day.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I own none of the characters or the original story.

Final chapter! Yay! I feel disgusted by my fluffy self, and I'm never writing fluff again. Anyway, I hope you like it. I feel like I got a little out of character, but that's bound to happen when someone who isn't the original author is writing these characters. I seem to have put a lot of my own awkwardness into them. The whole lip-biting thing, I do that a lot. In fact, I found I was doing it whenever I wrote about them doing it.  
Anyway, fluffy. Mildly angsty (or else I would die). Bye, and thanks for reading!

* * *

**A Brief History of Tofu**

3: _Traditionally used as a food offering_

He really did try. He tried not to watch her over the top of his art history textbook. He tried not to pretend that his fingers splayed in her hair. He tried not to grin uncontrollably as he did these things. Stalkers, generally speaking, did not get the girl.

But there was no way to overcome. No taking his eyes off her, no stop to the daydreams. No reprieve. Not that he particularly wanted a reprieve, but either way, he couldn't stop.

Every now and then she would glance up and catch his eye, only to blush and drop her eyes back to her book, accompanied with the slightest upturn at the corners of her mouth. Each time, this would cause him to bite his lip and he would feel the warmth rising in his own cheeks.

Beside him, Jasper just pretended to be absolutely engrossed in his book. He was the only one actually succeeding in self-control. Edward knew that he would get a few choice deadpan comments later, but he was completely willing to deal with that.

Edward still had one problem though: he'd never been in a relationship before. Not really. Back in high school, he'd experienced the occasional drunken hook-up, which always ended up too awkward for words. Even without those experiences, he didn't have an inkling as to how to go about asking Bella out on a date. He worked himself up a few times, but somehow all his confidence kept getting shot. _What if it ends badly? What if she realizes she doesn't like me? What if I hurt her?_

He wanted to be selfish, but too many possibilities floated out there in the atmosphere. So for the moment, getting lost in his head sufficed.

Jasper shocked him out of his thoughts with a sharp jab in the ribs. Edward jumped, his text slipping between his fingers and hit the table with a slap, disrupting the silence of the library. A roomful of eyes darted in his direction, some glaring, some barely interested. "What?" he hissed under his breath.

"Why haven't you asked her out yet?"

"I'm working on it."

"You know, I think it'd be better for everyone if you just… did it. In one fell swoop." Jasper had this way of talking very directly without actually making eye contact with anyone. Through experience, he knew that it was the best way to convince Edward of doing something.

"Like a band-aid?"

"Exactly. Except it won't be that painful."

Edward scowled, looking down at a Caravaggio splayed across the two pages in front of him. He hadn't even realized these pages had no text. "Nobody really knows that." Jasper sighed in exasperation, shaking his head. He never took his eyes away from the battered book in his hands.

"Both of you are being really immature. Just step up to plate, please, and save the rest of us the torture." Finally, Jasper looked askance at Edward, who met him with a glare. The room felt smaller, more suffocated. Edward decided he had to leave, find somewhere else to go. With any luck, one of the private practice rooms would be open and he could play something. He hadn't sat down in front of a piano in ages, and his fingers itched for the keys. Casting one final look at Bella, who sat in the same seat, typing furiously, Edward shoved his text into his backpack and slipped out the door.

Outside, a fair amount of snow had melted, although a fine dusting still littered the ground. It was supposed to start snowing again that night, so he figured he had to enjoy the freedom to move across campus while he had it.

As soon as he sat on the bench, whatever tension in his muscles melted away and he immediately began to play. A month without practice made some transitions sloppy, and his fingertips flew across the keys with far less dexterity than he had hoped. Nevertheless, he pushed every thought out of his mind and focused on the music. Stumbling only lightly, he moved from a Dvořák waltz to Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata. He finished that, and set his fingers down on his lap, twisting them and intertwining them, lost completely in thought.

"That… was gorgeous…"

Edward started, turning to stare at his company. Completely unbeknownst to him, Bella had crept into the room during his play. "How long have you been standing there?" he asked.

"Not very long. I only caught the end of that last piece."

"I messed up a lot. It's been a while."

"I didn't notice," Bella said. He noticed that he hands hid behind her back, and her warm eyes couldn't exactly focus on him. "I'm not all that up on my classical music, though. Would you mind if I listen while you play?"

Edward shook his head as he felt that same smile creep onto his face – the one he sometimes wished he could hide around her, though it never listened. "Do you want to sit?" He motioned to the space on the bench next to him. Bella lifted one foot, but almost immediately stepped back, huffing slightly.

Involuntarily, his fists balled and he narrowed his eyes. He felt like he was boiling underneath his skin. If he weren't so surprised by the sudden anger, he probably would've stayed angry for a while. Not that it was so much anger as frustration. Or maybe it wasn't even that.

The confusion made him want to scream.

Instead, he found his voice coming out soft, almost a purr, but with an unnecessarily hard edge to it. "Bella, I'm confused."

"About what?" Her voice came out twisted, muffled.

"You." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "Sometimes when I'm with you, it's like you're not entirely there."

"Oh." That was all she could say. The sound was low, almost like she'd only made the shape with her lips without speaking. Quickly, he realized that their conversation was getting nowhere. However, he stayed rooted to his seat, watching her warily.

He found himself sighing, except that now he felt calmer. The frustration still lingered just below the surface of his voice, but he worried he might scare her off. He worried far too much, he thought. "Okay. I don't know how to say this any way except bluntly, so… I'm just going to say it."

He couldn't. Bella looked at him expectantly. A few more deep breaths and he could speak. He just needed to not worry so much about her reaction, that was all. "I think… I'm falling in love with you."

"Oh." Again, Bella was barely audible.

"Sometimes, I think you feel the same way – or at least, similar – but then you sort of detach. I get lost, and I don't know what to say, or how to act. I like spending time with you, but every now and then there's this wall that ends up between us. I want to break it down, Bella. I want to be able to look at you and not feel embarrassed that you know. I want…" He stopped.

Across the room, back pressed against the door, Bella shook her head. Disbelief flooded his face, combined with something far more tortured. He thought he could endure the "just friends" aspect, but he was wrong. A part of him constantly nagged at the back of his mind (or, rather, more towards the front) saying that she didn't reciprocate. He didn't want to lose her as a friend, but it was live without being able to reach out and touch her, or live with the rejection and move on.

The rejection completely floored him. His breathing slowed and he felt dizzy; his cheeks increasingly got hotter as he realized how much of an idiot he'd made himself out to be. The entire time, he'd imposed himself on her. He was a burden.

"Could you talk?" he asked, trying to hide the mounting hurt and annoyance, the latter of which was directed at himself.

"Um… give me a second," Bella said. Without warning, she sank to the floor and looked directly at him, eyes full of too many emotions for him to identify and list. "You're saying that you like me?" Edward wanted to be annoyed at that, but he couldn't, so he nodded. "I'm confused."

"You're confused?"

"Yes. Just… hold on… let me… ugh, I don't understand this. That makes no sense. It doesn't happen."

"Why not?"

"You are joking with me, aren't you? This is some kind of sick joke. It's not funny."

"Bella, I am not playing a joke on you." He paused. "I'm trying to talk to you. I'm trying to be honest. If you don't feel the same way, tell me and then kindly leave."

"That's the thing, Edward. I do. But we can't be together."

"Oh, don't be so melodramatic."

"I'm not being melodramatic," she said incredulously. "I'm just saying, this doesn't make sense to me."

"Why not?"

"Exhibit A – look at you. Now look at me." He just stared blankly at her. "You have your own fan club, Edward. You have your pick of just about any girl on campus. First of all, you play piano like a professional, you like to read, you love coffee, you're funny, you do well in school, and you're gor… you're easy on the eyes. There's no reason why you should pick me over everyone else here, or in the entire state of Vermont. I'm not interesting. I'm a klutz, I don't get along well with others, I'm… well, not so easy on the eyes…"

"You're very, very wrong about that last part," he muttered wearily, though he felt the familiar smirk coming on. "Bella, you're being a little bit crazy, you know that?"

"No, I'm not. I'm trying to be rational here. What if you get bored with me? What if you realize that I'm not what you want?"

"I can't imagine that happening. Besides, we've known each other for a few weeks, Bella. We can only figure this out as we go along. But right now, I can't picture going on another second without having you with me. In everything. Well, maybe not everything, but…" He paused, picking himself up off the bench and walking over to her. Luckily, the room was only about ten feet across, so he took a few strides over to her, crouching a foot or so away. "I know this is mildly ridiculous, but I look at you… and I feel… I don't even know."

"And you're usually so eloquent," she said. She was playing with him. Playing was good.

"Shut up." Very quickly, his demeanor changed. "Bella, what I'm trying to say is… you're exactly what I want. How could I want anything else?"

"Easily."

"Do I have to show you how serious I'm being, Bella?" Without waiting for an answer, he took her cheek in hand, cupping it gently, and pressed his lips to hers. She didn't move a muscle.

Once again, he felt that powerful wave of rejection swelling in his stomach. "Okay," he murmured, drawing back. Edward expected Bella's face to be flushed, bright red; rather, she looked chalky pale, and her eyes inquisitive. She stared directly at him, locking his gaze. Then her huge grin – the one he pretended was only for him – broke out, and she threw her arms around his neck.

Suddenly, everything felt very bright and saturated, as though he hadn't seen real light in weeks. Her lips moved against his slowly at first, but when he placed both hands on her hips, she pushed into him, opening her mouth slightly. The rush of warm air between their lips exhilarated him, electrified him. Her fingers grabbed at his hair, pulling gently so that he was closer to her, so that there would be almost no space between them. His legs grew tired, but he didn't care. The thought of letting go, of creating space between them again, drove him crazy and he tightened his hold around her waist.

Then her lips left his, though their foreheads touched and they shared identical smiles (as identical as two very different people's smiles can be). He hadn't even thought he needed to breathe.

"How very cliché of us," Bella muttered. "It's like we're in some bizarre romantic comedy."

"Yes, well… I unfortunately can't come up with anything witty at the moment. Bear with me." He kissed her lightly on the nose. "And I have class in about ten minutes."

"Then we'll discuss this later. When you're out of class," she said breathlessly, staring deep into his eyes.

"Right. You'll have to remind me where we left off." The blush he found so endearing had returned to Bella's cheeks as she realized the position they were in: her back pressed against the doorway, him crouching with his hands awkwardly around her waist. Her arms had never left his neck. "You'll also have to let me go," he said quietly.

They both stood on shaky legs, and before he turned to leave, he pressed a kiss to her cheek and whispered, "Thank you." Then she stood alone, save for the piano.

He couldn't concentrate through his entire French class. His memory was far too good. Bella's hair, her eyes, her lips, those warm cheeks: they were all his. Technically. At least, for the moment. He didn't let his mind wander in that direction. Between the two of them, they had enough insecurities to make up for every arrogant person in history. As soon as the class finished, he sprang out the door. Just down the hall and around the corner, Bella stood waiting for him, coffee in hand. All smiles.

The two of them wandered to one corner of the campus where people rarely ventured at this time of day. Along the walk, their hands had drifted closer and closer together until their mittened fingers laced together.

"Bella, talk," Edward said through a sip, watching her as her face became more and more drawn, her eyebrows knitting in thought.

"I'm still confused."

He rolled his eyes and squeezed her hand. "Please, don't be. Listen, we won't know whether or not this will work unless we try. Personally, I'm ready to go to hell and back for you, and I barely know you, so I'm hoping beyond hope it will work out." He stopped, and then laughed at himself. "Okay, I need to stop taking cues from romance novels." She smiled back at him. "Let's try this again. Bella."

"Edward."

"I was wondering if maybe you would be interested in going out to dinner with me some time."

"What?"

"I'm trying to be proper here, bear with me." He brushed one hand across her cheek. Even beneath the cotton-hemp blend of his mitten, he could feel the heat radiating off of her. Pure bliss. "Would you like to go out to dinner with me, yes or no?"

"Yes," she said, laughing.

"Now, do you remember what you were being hysterical about before?" Edward asked. He was immediately treated with a scoff and an eye-roll. "About how you don't think you're good enough for me? May I say that you are possibly the most absurd person I've ever met for thinking that?"

"You already made that clear."

"Then why does your face keep falling that way?"

"What way?"

"The way it did whenever you seemed like you were second-guessing yourself around me." She averted her eyes, but he caught her chin in his hand and gently forced her gaze back up. "Bella, every part of me wants us to work out. If it doesn't, my bones might break or something equally as dramatic. I don't want you to ever feel like you're second-best. I don't ever want you to feel unworthy. Hell, if anything, I feel unworthy half the time I'm around you. You amaze me."

"Right."

"You do. Honestly, Bella, you do," he said in earnest, leaning ever closer to her. "Please believe that. If neither of us can get over whatever's holding us back, this relationship will crumble."

"What's holding you back?" she asked, eyes widened with interest now. Edward fell silent. "Oh, c'mon, Edward. I want to know."

It was his turn to look away. "I worry that I'll end up hurting you, or that you'll never fall for me the way I've fallen for you." Instead of speaking, Bella simply crushed her lips against his, and then pulled back quickly.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to do that," she stammered.

"That's okay." He pulled her closer, catching her in another soft kiss. "I could get used to this, silly girl." She smiled against his mouth, and he pulled her closer. "Silly, silly girl," he murmured into her lips. When they pulled apart, breathless despite the relative tameness of the kiss, he knew he wouldn't be able to let go again. "I can't believe I've waited a month for this."

"I can," Bella said, smirking. He pushed her gently before taking her up in a tight hug. Her hair tickled his nose with the strong scent of strawberries, leading him to plant his lips on her forehead.

"Bella, can I ask you something?" All of a sudden, something hit him. It seemed completely out of place, really.

"What?"

"How did you know where I was earlier? I mean, it's not that I'm not thankful you dropped in, but how'd you find me?"

Already, Bella's cheeks had turned bright red, practically matching his mittens. "Um… that's a good question…"

"Are you going to tell me?"

She bit her lip, weighing her options. The act, so incredibly simple, made him reach down and kiss her again, catching her off guard. This time, his tongue darted into her mouth, exploring a little bit. Just as suddenly as he had begun, he pulled away again, Bella pouting slightly. "I'm sorry. I seem to be moving very quickly." Bella only shrugged, inciting a laugh from Edward. "Anyway, tell me, please?"

"Jasper told me where he thought you were going. He sort of caught me off-guard."

"What'd he say?"

"Something about how we're both blind and that I should go running after you before we dug ourselves into pits of despair."

"That's more words than Jasper has ever spoken to anyone besides Alice and I, I think, in his entire life. Anyway, you listened to him, then?" There she went, always quick to blush.

"Curiosity got the better of me. I wasn't expecting anything quite so… substantial by following you. I still can't believe I did it. I'm not usually so forward"

Edward snorted. "Forward? Bella, on a scale of one to ten, ten being stalker, you're probably about a two."

"Would you have followed after me?" Bella asked.

"Maybe." Actually, he didn't know. Because of all the times Bella seemed so disinterested in him, he doubted he would believe anyone that said they were meant for each other. Jasper seemed convinced of it already. "Probably not," he admitted.

"See. Forward. Maybe even desperate."

"Anyway, enough of that. Dinner plans. You said I could take you out on a proper date, and I plan on doing just that."

Bella stopped dead in her tracks. "Just so you know, I'm not giving up meat."

"Not yet," Edward said with a trademark crooked smile. "Baby steps."

"I don't know if I can do that." The look on her face was of pure terror.

"Trust me," he murmured, kissing the top of her head. The two of them continued to walk down the path, and Edward pulled her closer to him, tossing an arm casually over her shoulder. It surprised him how right she felt, snuggled close to his body. All around them, tiny puffs of white tumbled to the ground, almost dancing in the air.

"I wonder if you can make a snow-block-of-tofu," Bella mused.

* * *

**The End.**


End file.
